Chapter 69
Come to think of it, Eden had mentioned that Bezel possessed divine power.
‘Why would I care about you? I don’t know what you’re misunderstanding, but this is because of divine power, so don’t get the wrong idea.’
What a remarkable connection. The victim she had rescued on a commission just happened to possess divine power strong enough to alleviate her curse.
And of all things, the method of channeling that divine power had to be a kiss.
Working at the temple, Johan had met all sorts of high priests, from those who sang to those who waved branches, but he had never seen anyone who used that kind of physical contact.
Well, there was no set method for using divine power, so he could let that slide. But according to the conversation he had with Eden yesterday, the man wasn’t even a high priest.
“Even so, how could you just dump someone you barely know on an outsider? Did you at least run a background check?”
“I did some investigating on my own, just in case, but there was nothing to find. I asked around everywhere, but no one knew a man like that.”
“Not a single person?”
“Yeah. And since we only had his name to go on, it was unclear where to even begin the investigation….”
Just because someone had divine power didn’t mean they all became high priests, but in cases like that, word would spread that so-and-so from such-and-such place had divine power even if they tried to hide it. On top of that, even without any abilities, Bezel was a man with looks striking enough to be famous across the entire Empire.
And yet not a single person knew this man. Considering the intelligence network of the Holy Knights spread across every corner of the country, it simply didn’t make sense.
The primary duty of the Holy Knights was to apprehend people. They also handled investigations into religion-related crimes. Maybe it was because he had been in that line of work for so long, Johan had a particularly sharp instinct for ‘people,’ compared to ordinary folk
That Bezel guy, something about him didn’t sit right. Neither the fact that he remembered nothing beyond his name, nor the fact that out of all crimes, he happened to have been a sacrifice for a heretic’s summoning ritual.
“About that victim. Are you certain he was a sacrifice? Not a follower pretending to be one?”
“Come on, if that were the case, he wouldn’t have divine power. It doesn’t make sense for people who worship demons to have divine power.”
“That’s true, but….”
Johan trailed off, tapping his fingers on his knee.
“Why are you overthinking this? Don’t tell me you’re one of Hunter Eden’s admirers too?”
With a puzzled expression, Nicholas watched Johan shake his head, then shrugged.
‘He’s probably just interested, whatever.’ Whenever Nicholas told people he had met Eden, most knights reacted the same way. They might have been envious, sure, but they didn’t usually pry this much into the details.
Johan watched his classmate rummage through his pockets and pull out a snack as if he had said all there was to say, then turned his gaze toward the window.
‘If you’re curious, figure it out yourself.’
Through the rattling noise of the train, Eden’s mocking voice echoed.
Tap, tap, tap. The moment his fingers moved three times in a steady rhythm, Johan made his decision.
It seemed he needed to look into this man called Bezel, just as Eden had said.
He still didn’t know the true nature of this unsettling feeling. It could be jealousy toward the man who had claimed Eden, a woman who once was his, or it could be the remnants of lingering feelings for her. Maybe it was both. His ugly feelings toward Eden had turned into baseless suspicion, directed at an innocent victim.
But while ignoring this instinct might cause him to miss something, following it wouldn’t cost him anything.
This investigation would be conducted in secret. Even if nothing special was found, neither Eden nor Bezel himself would ever know that he had conducted an unpleasant background check.
* * *
Nitra had a bright and clean city image, befitting the capital of the Holy Empire of Brighton. Four stone bridges branched out from the massive central plaza, and following each bridge led to four distinct districts, each with its own unique character.
If one were to pick just one main road, it was naturally the Path of God, leading to the temple. Following the bridge heading east, one would pass through the commercial district, the residential district, and finally reach the temple. The people of Brighton believed that simply being near the temple kept them safe from demons. This was why the shopping districts and residential complexes had particularly developed along the eastern road.
The southern road was where the artists’ studios were clustered. Music praising God echoed from every corner of the streets, and every few steps, one could find sculptures of God and paintings depicting passages from the scripture.
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